Still Far Away
by shannyfish
Summary: With Jemma back after six months on an alien planet, Bobbi must force everyone to give her and Jemma some space to ensure that Jemma is okay. Takes place at the very end of 3x02


**Author's Note** : This scene goes between Fitz pulling Jemma back to Earth and Jemma waking up.

* * *

And the blood will dry

Underneath my nails

And the wind will rise up

To fill my sails

So you can doubt

And you can hate

But I know

No matter what it takes

I'm coming home

I'm coming home

Tell the world that I'm coming home

Let the rain

Wash away

All the pain of yesterday

I know my kingdom awaits

And they've forgiven my mistakes

I'm coming home

I'm coming home

Tell the world I'm coming

Still far away

From where I belong

But it's always darkest

Before the dawn

~ "Coming Home, Part II" by Skylar Grey

* * *

The transport home was the hardest.

Home.

Bobbi hadn't realized that she thought about The Playground as home. She really hadn't thought about anywhere as home. Not in a long time.

"I need you all to find somewhere else to be!" Bobbi finally barked at them all when all of her polite and general statements had gone ignored. Everyone just stared at her for about a blink and then started to file out of the medical bay.

"But-" Fitz started to argue, still standing nearby Jemma.

"You can stay close by," Bobbi told him quickly. Poor Fitz. He'd spent the last six months searching for Jemma, never giving up even when Coulson had told him that he needed to. She'd covered for him the entire time, much to Coulson's indignation. "But ONLY if you behave and do what I say. Are we clear?" When FItz started to nod quickly, she turned her attention back to Jemma.

It was going to be a long flight.

There were things that she knew that after six months on a planet that she would want to do, like shower...probably shampoo and condition her hair about ten times. That wasn't all though, Bobbi knew Jemma would want to change clothes and brush her teeth...brush her hair. Bobbi was certain that that would make Jemma feel better. To just be able to do the things that they all took for granted every day. The only thing was that she knew that changing into the spare scrubs they had on board the Bus wasn't going to be comfortable.

"I'm going to examine you, okay?" she asked Jemma and actually waited. The entire time, Simmons had been sitting on the medical examination table and Fitz had been standing a few feet away.

Bobbi (and Hunter and Mack) had all joined Coulson and May's little family. She might not have joined under the most HONEST terms, but that didn't change the love she had for them. She, Mack, and Hunter were close...of course, and in respectively different ways and on different levels. She'd especially felt closer to Fitz over the past several months, helping him where she could as he kept up the search. Bobbi adored Jemma and she'd been feeling really indebted to her. Knowing that Jemma was only doing her job when she'd saved her life, Bobbi still found herself all these months later still unable to leave SHIELD without Jemma being back.

She owed Jemma her life.

Jemma had not only given HER another chance at life, but she'd given it to her AND Hunter. After she'd nearly died, she had told Lance that she couldn't do it anymore. The almost dying, the almost losing everything, the almost having to watch the man she loved killed in front of her...she just couldn't do it. Ward had almost taken everything. The pain she could endure for a lifetime...but not having Lance Hunter taken from her. They'd screwed things up in the past, but now...now it was different and she had hope for their future. So, she was completely ready to retire, after everything she'd done as an agent of SHIELD, she thought that she could definitely retire.

And then Jemma had been grabbed and swallowed up by the obellisk.

And she couldn't go.

Bobbi owed Jemma her life. So, she'd tried to do everything she could. Every moment, she hoped that they'd bring Jemma home. It had been heartbreaking to see Fitz just crumble at the loss. Hunter had been concerned about her recovery and her mind change, but she'd assured him that once Jemma was home that she was done...and during that time, he'd vowed to find Ward and kill him.

Months passed.

Even with pretty much nothing to go home, Bobbi couldn't give up on Jemma. She was clinging onto the renewed hope. She'd had to flex her muscles in ways she really hadn't delved into in some time. Being an agent in SHIELD, she'd spent so much time in the field...but she'd found herself in the lab doing Jemma's job. It was therapeutic in a way, but at the same time...it was a way to help Fitz and it was also kept her busy (with her hating not being in the field, at least it was something to do and to contribute).

More months passed.

The entire time, Bobbi hadn't wanted to give up. It had killed her to watch how much Fitz suffered. So, she'd covered for him. Coulson had hated it, but she hadn't cared. Fitz needed to do it. Bobbi could understand that. She even sympathized with him. Every day she hoped that Jemma would come and that she could get out of SHIELD and the danger. Every day it made it harder...and harder...to want to leave…because these people around her...they'd become her family.

Now Jemma was coming home and Bobbi couldn't find herself really wanting to leave. She felt a sense of purpose. Bobbi couldn't bring herself to abandon this family...not now. The time just wasn't right. She was needed there.

"Can you tell me if anything is broken? Or just...what I should be concerned with?" Bobbi asked her gently. She knew that those who worked in the medical field were sometimes the worst and most stubborn patients. The silver lining to it was that they could tell you exactly what was wrong and what treatment they'd already started.

Silence.

Jemma wasn't even looking at her. Once they'd gotten Fitz and Simmons out of the hole in the ground, Bobbi had made mental notes that she hadn't observed anything obviously physically wrong with Jemma, she'd not had any problems being mobile, and she wasn't exhibiting any clear signs that she was in pain.

Without Jemma telling her and especially them not knowing what had happened to Jemma during those six months, Bobbi was going to have to give her a complete and extremely thorough physical. She had to know that Jemma was medically sound.

"Okay," Bobbi whispered slowly when Jemma didn't respond. She looked to Fitz, who was obviously a bundle of nerves. His hand was up to his face, while his other arm was wrapped around his torso, and he didn't seem to be able to keep still. Turning her attention back to Jemma, she knew that she needed to do this. To do her job. To know that Jemma was okay and to get her to the point where she could eat, shower, change, and crawl into her own bed (unless Bobbi felt like Jemma needed to stay in medical for the night for observation).

There was only so much she could do with Fitz still in the room. Coulson and May's team might be close-knit, but there were some things that required the only her and Jemma to inhabit the room. Fitz was going to have to stand outside and Bobbi just hoped that the two of them could hold it together long enough for her to complete her exam.

"Fitz, it's time for you to wait outside of the room," Bobbi said gently.

She didn't miss how Jemma seemed to clutch to Fitz's hand even tighter than she'd held onto him on the way to the Bus. Bobbi was quiet, though, trying not to be seen as intrusive. She didn't want to make this harder...on either of them.

Bobbi had been in a lot of situations during her time working for SHIELD, the separation from those that you cared for deeply over long periods of time (hell, even short periods of time)...it never got easier. She knew how close Fitz and Simmons were...being apart for six months...everyone believing that Jemma was likely out there (...somewhere...) dead. Right now, she had no idea how she'd be able to cope with the same thing, under the same conditions, if it had been Hunter.

Six Months.

On an alien planet.

Everyone else thinking you're dead, except for the person who loves you most.

"I'll be quick, I promise," Bobbi told them. Waiting, she just hoped that she didn't have to force things. Fitz had promised to listen to her, even though she knew that Simmons was obviously comforted by his presence.

"Fitz," Jemma barely whispered.

Bobbi had almost missed it, but she'd been watching them closely, the way that Jemma didn't want Fitz to leave her. Bobbi was really trying not to feel so badly for Jemma because they had so much to do, but Jemma looked like she was about to break down into tears at any moment...and here she was tearing away her lifeline (even if it was for a short period of time). She'd come to think of Jemma as sort of a little sister and Bobbi had sort of hoped that Jemma wouldn't react badly when she exiled Fitz from the room. Before she could open her mouth to remind Fitz of his promise, though, his mouth was already open and ready to speak.

Fitz had come a long way since coming out of his coma the year before, but he still sometimes had difficulties. "I'll be right outside," Fitz told Simmons so calmly and gently. His hand ran down along Jemma's arm, likely as a comfort. "Bobbi's going to be quick...and I'm going to be-to be right outside that door."

It was obvious that Fitz was having a hard time, too. Bobbi turned slightly, trying to give them a moment. Even though she'd be completing the physical and then doing a couple of more scans before getting Jemma into her shower. It only took Fitz another moment before he was moving away from Jemma, slowly yet surely. Bobbi waited until he was gone before moving closer to Jemma.

"I promise I will be as quick as I can," Bobbi told her. She went into detail, telling Jemma everything she was about to do before she did it, even though the younger woman knew exactly what the protocol was that she was following.

Bobbi froze at first, but didn't say anything when she realized that Jemma was holding something tightly in one hand. She was checking over every inch of Jemma, to ensure that nothing had been missed. Any bruise or cut or scrape or anything else that was out of place, Bobbi was making notes of. She'd decided to check that arm last and had gone about doing everything else, all the while thinking about what she was going to say. Finally it was time and there was no getting around it.

Six months on an alien planet, facing only God knew what… Bobbi HAD to be thorough in her physical examination of Jemma. "We're nearly done," she spoke up. "I just need to look over this arm," she said as Bobbi extended her hand to tap Jemma's upper arm. She was ready for any reflex. As she'd examined Jemma, she'd been able to ascertain that it was something sharp, something that Jemma had kept as a weapon.

What was on that planet that she'd needed to protect herself from?

"It's fine," Jemma whispered emptily, not even looking at Bobbi.

Those were the first words that Jemma Simmons had uttered to her since Jemma and Fitz had been pulled out of that hole of blasted monolith. Bobbi just stared at her for a long moment, taking in breath and reminding herself that she needed to be delicate. "Do you want to talk about what happened to you? Or anything?" Bobbi ventured. She was trying to be gentle, not to push. To just put it out there that she'd listen.

"No."

At least it was a response.

"You weren't alone," Bobbi stated, rather than questioned. Jemma finally looked at her, but it was only for a moment.

"No."

Every response was barely a whisper, but it told her something. It spoke volumes. When she and Jemma had first met, she'd been this adorable little scientist who had been daring enough to go undercover within Hydra. Now, this woman in front of her...a little broken...or possibly a lot (that was still to be determined)...she was someone completely different.

Jemma Simmons was a survivor.

"Okay," Bobbi finally said. She reached out and touched the arm she hadn't looked over once again. "Switch hands," she whispered, trying to do her best to examine as quickly as she could. She didn't take in what Jemma transferred to her other hand, but had rather just caught the movement.

She was worried about the other woman.

Worried enough that she suddenly felt guilty because she felt like Jemma was going to need to be observed for at LEAST the night. She wanted to let Jemma go back to the familiarity of her own quarters...to her own bed...to her own everything, but she didn't feel like she could risk it just then. Bobbi didn't want to be responsible if Jemma reacted badly to something, especially since they still didn't know exactly WHAT she'd been through. Obviously, she'd had to survive...because she was there...and she wasn't alone on that planet…

"Is it okay if I have Daisy get some things for you to wear from your room?" Bobbi finally asked. She noticed that Jemma looked confused and she realized that six months ago...Daisy went by Skye...and she was about to correct herself for Jemma when she just gave her a nod. "Okay, let's get you to the shower then...I think I have everything in there that you might need," Bobbi told her. She escorted Jemma to where the showers were for the medical. It was a private area and one in which Bobbi could get into quickly, if needed. "But I won't be far...if you need anything else."

The door was pushed open and she made sure that everything was in place, including a towel before leaving Jemma to hopefully relax and enjoy an actual shower. The entire time, her eyes were on the makeshift weapon held tightly in Jemma's hand. Bobbi really didn't think that self harm was something she needed to worry about. If Jemma had wanted to hurt herself, she had had six months to do it. She hadn't. She'd fought. She'd survived. Bobbi wasn't worried about that, but she still thought it was important to observe her overnight just the same.

She'd gone just far enough to tell Fitz that Jemma was in the shower and to have him go and ask Daisy to retrieve some clothes for Jemma. Bobbi just didn't want to go far. Plus, it gave something for Fitz to do. Busy was good. It made the time pass quicker and kept you saner. Or at least that's what she told herself.

Time passed, Fitz returned to his post, and Daisy brought by a pile of clothes for Jemma. There were scrubs, of course, but having your own clothes just was nicer and likely to feel more like 'home'. Daisy placed the stack in her arms. "Thanks."

"I hope that's okay," Daisy replied. She, like everyone else, seemed concerned about Jemma. "It looked comfy and homey. I thought that was a good way to go for tonight."

"I think you're right," Bobbi agreed.

"I'm assuming that visiting hours are still over until you say?"

Bobbi smiled. "I think Jemma just needs some more time...space…" she tried to explain and was fairly sure that everyone understood that. "Hopefully after a good night's sleep...she'll feel a little more at home...and comfortable...and social…"

"Do you really think we'll see her at breakfast?"

No.

Definitely no.

Bobbi was fairly sure that it was going to take Jemma a lot longer than a night's sleep, but she was trying to be optimistic and keeping everyone else on the team on that same page. She shrugged a moment later and then shook her head.

"Yeah...me too."

"It's going to take her some time." The sound of the shower turning off caught her attention. "I should probably go," she told Daisy. "But thank you so much again for bringing the clothes."

"Let me know if there's anything I can do to help."

"Will do."

As Daisy left, Bobbi headed towards the full bathroom and knocked lightly on the door. "Clothes."

They didn't exchange words past that point. Jemma had popped out, wrapped in a towel, and had taken them back into the bathroom with her. She went out to check on Fitz, who had started to pace a small space. For a moment, Bobbi just watched him. She'd watch him struggle and fight so hard to find Jemma...and now that she was home...he was still struggling.

"Fitz," she said quietly, hoping not to startle him.

"Bobbi," Fitz rambled. "Where's Jemma? Why are you out here-and where is she? She's okay? Right?! There's nothing-"

"She's getting dressed," Bobbi informed him quickly as she held up a hand. "I know you two want to be close, but I'm going to need her to stay in medical observation for tonight."

"But I can stay, right?"

"She's probably going to sleep the whole time-"

"I'll sit on the floor," Fitz offered. "I'll sit in the doorway...except that would probably make me a fire hazard...but I'll sit wherever you want if it means that I can stay close to Jemma."

"Why don't we let Jemma decide if she wants company, okay?" Bobbi suggested, not wanting to hurt Fitz's feelings, but also wanting Jemma to be able to rest and relax. She motioned for him to enter medical once again. There was no use standing in the hallway when they really needed to go and talk to Jemma (once she was done getting dressed) about what she wanted to do.

She watched for a short period of time as Fitz fidgeted and paced again. Bobbi was the first to notice Jemma exiting the bathroom, but just remained quiet. Jemma was the one to move first, immediately moving to close the distance between her and Fitz, taking his hand as soon as she could. Bobbi had to admit that Jemma looked so much better now that she was showered and in clean clothes. There was still something in her eyes...she looked shattered...but Bobbi knew that that wasn't true. Jemma just needed time.

How Jemma was clinging to Fitz and keeping such close company, she knew that Fitz would be occupying the floor of the medical observation room. "Let's get you into bed," Bobbi said, not taking the time to allow Jemma or Fitz to say anything.

The medical observation room was simple and constructed of the white honeycomb looking walls like they used for other parts of SHIELD facilities (and the Bus) that was impervious to Inhuman powers. There was a bed in the room and one that didn't LOOK like a medical bed. It wasn't much, but it was enough for one night that's only agenda was to sleep. As they walked, Bobbi had looked for any sign of Jemma's weapon, but hadn't seen it again.

"I can give you a sedative if you need it," Bobbi offered as she made sure that Jemma got into bed alright while Fitz found his spot on the floor about a yard away from Jemma's bed. Apparently a sedative wouldn't be needed, she thought, as Jemma shook her head. Bobbi was looking for the weapon as she tucked Jemma in. She pulled up the covers and tried to make sure that Jemma was all set. It was then that she saw an end to the sharp-stick looking object. Bobbi wasn't going to take it, but she was going to be staying up watching Jemma for sure. "You're safe," she felt the need to say. "Fitz is going to be right here...and I'll be out in medical for the night. If you need anything, I'll be close. Fitz can come and get me."

"I'm not leaving, Jemma," Fitz said.

Jemma still seemed nervous, afraid, and completely unlike the Jemma that Bobbi remembered. She really wished that Jemma would allow her to give her something to help her sleep, but at the same time...she wanted to respect Jemma's wishes as much as she could. So, Bobbi patted her arm for a moment. "You're home," Bobbi reminded. "Sleep well." As she headed out of the room, she touched Fitz's shoulder before leaving them alone.

Closing the door, she thought about Hunter. He was off looking for Ward and all she could do was wish that she was there by his side. Darn knee. Darn recovery taking so freaking long. Bobbi just hoped that things were going to be better than she realistically thought they would be, that Jemma would be normal (as normal as you could be after what she'd gone through) in a few days...and that during the time that she was taking to find that Jemma Simmons that she and Fitz would have time to talk about things.

All she wanted was her family back.

She decided that she was going to make herself comfortable in her chair, where she could keep an eye on the feed of the medical observation room. Bobbi decided that once Jemma was asleep, she'd track down some snacks and possibly try to convince Mack to keep her company for a while. No matter how far away Jemma was from their world and their family currently, Bobbi wasn't going to give up on her or abandon her.

They were family.

They were in this together.

No matter what.

* * *

The End.


End file.
